A new petition on the Government's No 10 website invites drivers to register their protest at the growing menace of Height Barriers.

Height Barriers are increasingly being used by local authorities to prevent access to car parks by HGVs and "Travellers" . However, these barriers also cause major inconvenience to those with a legitimate right or need to park their vehicle.

Some disabled drivers vehicles, most motorcaravans, some 4x4s and anyone with a roof rack are among those denied access to shopping areas, leisure facilities and tourist sites.

"In many cases the affected vehicles are likely to be tourists or people trying to enjoy their leisure time," said ABD spokesman Nigel Humphries. "One council department spends public money trying to encourage tourists to visit their area, whilst another is spending public money preventing them from parking!"

"For many owners, their motorcaravan is their only vehicle — they don't have the option of using a car that can get under the barrier. This is nothing short of discrimination. And for those of us made victims by the authorities, it is a frustrating and distressing experience."

We understand that travellers and fly tippers can cause issues for local councils, but the answer to this is to strengthen the laws that deal with these problems and to enforce them, not to obstruct everyone over an arbitrary height with barriers.

These barriers can also lead to expensive damage when people have roof racks or cycle carriers that they do not realise exceed this height, especially when faced with an entirely artificial barrier in an otherwise open area.

"I damaged one vehicle on a barrier in Worcestershire, which allowed me to enter the car park (which I did very carefully to ensure clearance), but was lower on the exit side, causing a scrape to the roof," concluded Humphries. "They can't even make them a consistent height! When I took an old bed to a tip in Essex and had my tailgate up, I was luckily wise to the hazard, or I would have done more damage."